alright, so this beer finally came out. sorry for the frosty mug. it's a dark brown color and not the black i was looking for. anyway, the beer turned out quite nice when it was carbonated. it has a bit more body than other all-grain beers i've done. if i added some maltodextrin, it would have come out much better. for a stout and for my tastes, it is a bit heavy on the hops. but it tastes like beer, oh so good beer for the first time in a while. i'll report back with some better tasting notes in a week or two